JLA #84

Artist Doug Mahnke rejoins Joe Kelly for Part 1 of "Trial by Fire." Super-villains across the globe are suddenly incapacitated by remorse over the deeds of their heinous pasts, leading the JLA to investigate the cause of this mysterious about-face! But how does the answer connect to the Martian Manhunter?

The main problem that this arc has is that it is messing about with one element of the DCU that is effectively immune from any lasting changes, as simple logic states that super-hero comics need super-villains, and as such the status quo will quickly be restored by the end of this arc. Now I guess the debate itself could be of some interest, as there's a fairly interesting little moment between Superman & the Martian Manhunter, where J'Onn offers up the suggestion that perhaps it's for the best that the villains of the DCU have been subjected to this mental tampering. I also rather enjoyed the idea that Batman is shown to be quite pleased by this change, and I imagine he'll have something to say about any attempt to return things to the way they were before. As for the secondary elements, I'm delighted to see J'Onn's weakness to fire has been done away with, and the somewhat dicey situation that looks to be developing between Ronnie & Raven's wife is certainly interesting, though this Read Full Review

Doug Mahnke and Tom Nguyen try to make up for this with their strong artwork, but unfortunately nothing can redeem this issue. This is the kind of book that discerning readers like you and I need to avoid. I'd say more, but it simply doesn't deserve our time. Read Full Review